Generally, a pipeline system provides a continuous pipe conduit that may include a variety of components and equipment, e.g., valves, compressor stations, communications systems, and meters. A pipeline may be used to transport liquid or gaseous materials from one point to another, usually from one point (or points) of production or processing to another, or to points of use. At compressor stations, one or more compressors maintain the pressure of gaseous material in a pipeline, as it is transported from one site to another. Similarly, for a liquid bearing pipeline, pumps may be used to maintain the pressure of liquid transported by a pipeline.
Obviously, running and maintaining a pipeline system can be expensive, and an important goal for the pipeline operator is to reduce operational costs. One substantial expense for the pipeline operator is the electricity required to run the compressors (or pumps) of the pipeline. At a minimum, an improperly maintained (or configured) compressor can require more electricity, and thus more money to run, than a properly configured one. This state is often referred to as “overconsumption,” i.e., a state where the compressor is operating and maintaining a desired pressure level in the pipeline, but consuming more electricity than is required (or was estimated) to accomplish this task. Further, at some point the performance of a malfunctioning (or improperly configured) compressor may degrade to the point where the pressure of the material transported in the pipeline falls to unacceptable levels, or the compressor may simply cease to operate at all.
The operations of a pipeline system may be coordinated and controlled from a central operations control center. At such a control center, an operator may monitor the operational state of the compressors used by a pressurized gas pipeline. To perform this task, software applications are available that monitor the operational state of pipeline components, including compressors and pumps. Sensors affixed to the pipeline components are used to relay information regarding a then current state of the pipeline to the control center. In some cases, the monitoring systems may be configured to raise an alarm when a monitored parameter (or combination of parameters) falls below (or climbs above) a predetermined value. However, these applications typically only provide an operator with alarm information for a specific overconsumption case. That is, the alarm may inform the operator that some monitored parameter is exceeding (or falling below) a specified threshold. This approach leaves the action to be taken, if any, to the discretion of the operator. Thus, this approach relies heavily on operator availability, skills, and knowledge to address and correct a problem with a compressor. Unfortunately, therefore, this approach does not ensure that a problem gets solved or even logged. In addition, even when an overconsumption problem is corrected, consistency in the solution is not guaranteed. A recurrent problem may frequently need an identical corrective action. However, because of the reliance on the control center operator, this does not always occur.
Accordingly, there remains a need for techniques for optimizing the operations of a pipeline system. Typically, the optimization process should be used to identify an allowable state of pipeline operations that satisfies any operational requirements, physical abilities, and that minimizes operational costs, most notably power consumption.